Marla Cimini – Lodginghttp://lodgingmagazine.com
Official Publication of the AH&LAFri, 09 Dec 2016 15:48:41 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.6.1Reinventing the Famed New Yorker Hotelhttp://lodgingmagazine.com/reinventing-the-famed-new-yorker-hotel/
http://lodgingmagazine.com/reinventing-the-famed-new-yorker-hotel/#respondMon, 11 Aug 2014 15:13:08 +0000http://lodgingmagazine.com/?p=13449Revitalizing the New Yorker Hotel in Manhattan was no small undertaking. At nearly 90 years old, the hotel required a great deal of careful planning before the renovations could even begin, and even after the project launched, the team had to make some pretty major revisions to the plans. Originally built in 1929, the Art Deco property on 8th Avenue and 34th Street has become one of New York City’s landmark structures thanks, in part, ...

]]>Revitalizing the New Yorker Hotel in Manhattan was no small undertaking. At nearly 90 years old, the hotel required a great deal of careful planning before the renovations could even begin, and even after the project launched, the team had to make some pretty major revisions to the plans.

Originally built in 1929, the Art Deco property on 8th Avenue and 34th Street has become one of New York City’s landmark structures thanks, in part, to an architectural style similar to that of the Empire State and Chrysler buildings. Across the street from Penn Station and steps away from extensive shopping, the Empire State Building, and other major attractions, the 912-room hotel is situated in a key Midtown location for tourists and business travelers alike. During its prime, the New Yorker was known across the globe as a glamorous, posh destination.

With the New Yorker losing its luster over time, Wyndham made a commitment to spearhead its renaissance, according to the hotel’s President and General Manager Ann Peterson. “By becoming a Wyndham property, we are able to work with the brand and reach its clientele, especially more business travelers—one of our target markets,” she says. “Since we are located in Manhattan and offer a variety of meeting spaces, we’re able to accommodate corporate functions.” The New Yorker’s management team plans for the property to become a sought-after destination for conferences, meetings, and large and small social functions in the near future.

To that end, Peterson has headed up the property’s renovation program since 2012, while overseeing the hotel’s day-to-day operations and the extended staff of more than 500 employees. The first renovation phase cost approximately $30 million, with additional phases scheduled each year over the next three to four years. Wyndham is looking to finish the project in 2019.

“We wanted to keep the hotel true to its roots, and that’s why we incorporated Art Deco touches throughout the renovated spaces, while changing color schemes to provide a more sophisticated and relaxed feel,” Peterson explains. “Additionally, we are upgrading and adding rooms to keep pace with the market—in 2015 there will be an additional 5,000 rooms available at surrounding New York City hotels.”

For this all-encompassing construction project, Peterson has been working with her team to modernize the property, including adding 114 rooms, enhancing the hotel’s exterior, revamping the ballroom facilities and all meeting spaces, and upgrading the various food and beverage offerings.

The hotel’s guestroom renovations include an array of distinctive upgrades: new bedding and carpeting and updated bathrooms accented with stylish color palettes. Upgraded technology, such as outlets built into the nightstands, desks, and other furniture and property-wide Internet access, is being added. The lobby features a communal business bar, allowing guests to recharge their devices. Also in the lobby, high-back chairs, the grand table in the foyer, and glass surrounding the balcony will be updated with a unified look matching the hotel’s Art Deco style.

Not surprisingly, like many major renovation jobs, the New Yorker project involved some unexpected construction and design challenges. “Due to the age of the building, we found surprises behind every wall,” Peterson says.

For example, while upgrading the bathrooms, the construction team was faced with replacing unexpectedly heavy, older cast-iron tubs. And the recent harsh winter caused some of the renovations to be delayed, but the team got back on track by finishing one floor at a time and creating a “lessons learned” list, she says. From there, the staff revised drawings, schedules, and furniture layouts.

Peterson added that although the property is in the midst of renovations, it’s still fully operational. “Guests will enjoy the grand lady as she makes her comeback as one of the largest hotels in New York City,” she says. “There will be more space in terms of hotel rooms, meeting rooms, and event areas—offering both leisure and business travelers a hotel that provides something for everyone while in a prime location. The renovations made are to update the property and introduce a fresh look, while keeping true to the hotel’s history.”

]]>http://lodgingmagazine.com/reinventing-the-famed-new-yorker-hotel/feed/0Appealing to Locals with the Right F&B Fithttp://lodgingmagazine.com/appealing-to-locals-with-the-right-fb-fit/
http://lodgingmagazine.com/appealing-to-locals-with-the-right-fb-fit/#respondTue, 11 Mar 2014 16:28:04 +0000http://lodgingmagazine.com/?p=10049When Lara Latture, COO of The Hotel Group, started working on the rebranding project for the South Bend, Ind., DoubleTree hotel in 2011, she knew she had to get the community’s buy-in for the renovated property to become a viable business. “We needed a 100 percent rally from the community in order to be successful,” she says. “We allocated a lot of dollars into the public space to make it more attractive to the community, ...

]]>When Lara Latture, COO of The Hotel Group, started working on the rebranding project for the South Bend, Ind., DoubleTree hotel in 2011, she knew she had to get the community’s buy-in for the renovated property to become a viable business. “We needed a 100 percent rally from the community in order to be successful,” she says. “We allocated a lot of dollars into the public space to make it more attractive to the community, and that was a priority. Our real goal in South Bend was to tell a completely new story with a building that had been there a long time and that has allowed itself to become somewhat diminished in reputation and quality.”

A former underperforming Marriott property, the hotel is situated in a primary downtown location, yet three years ago was in serious need of significant updating on a number of levels, from the guestrooms to the common areas, and especially the food and beverage offerings. The building shares some commercial space in the common atrium, so it was important for a strategic restaurant or café to be prominently featured there.

Latture and her team understood that the optimal solution would involve a name change to DoubleTree and a complete overhaul to ensure an effective refurbishment. And upon closer examination, they found the key to reintroducing the property to the local residents was to make drastic changes to the F&B. After conducting research and determining the best options for the community, they made the decision to add a full-service Starbucks store in the atrium while simultaneously renovating the existing restaurant on the opposite side of the floor.

“Our goal with the Starbucks was to get the local community involved, get them excited and to rethink the building and the business itself,” Latture says. “Ultimately, we did a ton of due diligence in the town of South Bend. The city was excited, and they wanted this new hotel to happen.” The concept worked, and the Starbucks breathed new life into the lobby area, immediately attracting customer traffic.

“The Starbucks has been a big hit in terms of adding energy and vitality to a space that was moribund,” says Doug Dreher, president and CEO of The Hotel Group. On the other side of the building, another project was taking shape. The existing restaurant in the nine-story atrium was a vast structure of various levels that had lost market share over the years and had become less popular with guests and locals.

“We leveled the restaurant and created a new bar which was the main engine, so that became was the new focal point for the space,” Dreher says. “We then added a new dining room so we had all the dynamics we needed to create a sprawling multi-tier restaurant for the hotel.” The new restaurant, Baker’s Bar and Grille, boasts a Studebaker-themed décor. “Coupled with the Starbucks, it has been a nice complement to the property.”

Completed in June 2013, the rebranding and reinvention has positively impacted the hotel on a number of levels. According to The Hotel Group, since the renovations, the property has seen a 20 percent increase in room revenue, the RevPar index is up 13 percent, and the overall occupancy is up 35 percent. Together with the F&B and Starbucks, the hotel’s total revenue is up 29 percent.

Dreher says the renovation allowed the hotel to become ingratiated to the local community, re-establish some credibility, and even be genuinely embraced. Latture says: “Conceptually, we knew it is the anchor hotel for downtown South Bend. We saw an upside—at our company, we always see an upside.”

]]>http://lodgingmagazine.com/appealing-to-locals-with-the-right-fb-fit/feed/0Healthy Owner-Manager Relationships Propel Growthhttp://lodgingmagazine.com/owner-manager-relationships/
http://lodgingmagazine.com/owner-manager-relationships/#respondFri, 24 Jan 2014 15:48:25 +0000http://lodgingmagazine.com/?p=9253When a hotel owner puts a property in the hands of an operator, cultivating a positive working relationship is vital to the performance and long-term success of the asset. But it isn’t always easy to achieve a balance that’s equitable for everyone involved. For David Duncan, president of Denihan Hospitality Group, his company’s success largely depends on cultivating long-standing relationships with property owners. The fact that Denihan has ownership in 60 percent of the 14 ...

]]>When a hotel owner puts a property in the hands of an operator, cultivating a positive working relationship is vital to the performance and long-term success of the asset. But it isn’t always easy to achieve a balance that’s equitable for everyone involved. For David Duncan, president of Denihan Hospitality Group, his company’s success largely depends on cultivating long-standing relationships with property owners. The fact that Denihan has ownership in 60 percent of the 14 properties it currently manages helps foster these solid business partnerships.

Denihan has grown from six to 14 upscale properties since 2006. Its client base of hotel owners ranges from publicly traded companies to private equity funds, and they provide a wealth of valuable information, such as benchmarking data and current industry observations. “We use this as a mirror every day regarding how we are operating our hotels,” Duncan says.
As part of Denihan’s business model, the family-run management company deems it essential to have its own capital, specifically allocating funds to fuel growth and further solidify its alliance with the property owners. “Having our own capital is a key to our success,” Duncan points out. “If we invest alongside of our owners, then our relationship is successful because we truly are partners. We work closely together, and together we determine the right allocation of capital and resources to maximize the real estate value of the hotels over time.”

In addition, Denihan’s ownership base is comprised of seasoned hotel industry pros who are tech-savvy, forward-thinking, and committed to continually enhancing the company’s initiatives. “The interesting part about our business is that our Internet presence is not only important to the guests but to the owners as well,” Duncan notes. “They can go on their iPads, laptops, or smartphones in the middle of the night and see how their property looks to the world, validating their confidence in our company’s ability to properly market and position our hotels.”

Currently, siblings and co-CEOs Patrick Denihan and Brooke Denihan Barrett are at the helm, and they are committed to the company’s philosophy and views about key management-owner relationships. Today, Denihan’s portfolio of boutique lifestyle hotels features 11 New York City properties, including The James, The Benjamin, The Surrey, and several Affinia locations, as well as The James Chicago, The James Royal Palm in Miami, and the Liaison Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.

Duncan says the company is committed to doubling its size in the next five years. Growth plans involve a major U.S. expansion to the West Coast, where Denihan opened an office in 2011. The company is pursuing between 200 to 500 key urban core, conversion, and repositioning opportunities in major destinations such as Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, and Portland. “We will be adding new properties—but only if they are the optimal partner, location, or extension of our brand,” Duncan says.

Having an ongoing, quality relationship with an owner is just one element that bolsters a management company’s success. There are also the guest relationships. “We spend an incredible amount of time educating our 2,500 employees to respect our guests, and we make sure we spend the same amount of effort to ensure that our management team respects the owners,” Duncan says. “We listen to our employees and owners, and respond to their needs accordingly. It’s been proven that the value of those relationships will help propel our growth.”